Day 4.
I just unknowingly hiked up the steepest hill in my existence.
One hill leads to another hill and I remind myself, what goes up- must come down.
I've walked a lot here alone and in some secluded areas at night. I haven't had any issues or felt like I was in danger, maybe it's just that my calves are getting a little intimidating.
Either way, it's nice to feel safe here in İstanbul.
Now I'm sitting here with a night cap while I do my recap.
This bar sits across the street from a hospital, very convenient in case my legs decide they're not going to leg anymore.
The weather was a little less hot but that didn't change the amount of sweat that happened.
I call this “the calm before the sweat”.
I slept in until about 10am, living that Turkish lifestyle. First things first, I had to get a cappuccino.
Not a bad walk to the coffee shop.
Forever walking by palaces and castle-ish structures in İstanbul.
Stopped in at this cute place on the way to Ortaköy.
I stayed here for awhile, drinking my cappuccino and mineral water, and mostly resting.
There is no leisurely pace to the walk here. It's a hard stomp to wherever you're going. I'm also a little competitive when it comes to my stride speed, asserting my dominance in mph.
After admitting to myself that there was a whole day to do and I couldn't just live at the coffee shop, I headed to Ortaköy square.
I'm in love with this Mosque (Ortaköy Mosque), it is the most beautiful one that I've seen so far. It was stunning from every angle.
And just inside the Mosque gate, a photo that says, “no matter where you go, there you are”.
I got a little hungry so I decided to hop into this place called Ortaköy Farını. I had a chicken sandwich because you can take the girl out of the country but she likes chicken sandwiches and it's too hot for pasta.
It was filling and gave me enough strength to go on a boat tour around the Bosphorus…I couldn't help myself, y'all know I like boats. I took a ton of b&w photos on film, expect an unveiling sometime later this year.
After my luxury cruise on the Bosphorus I walked back up to Beşiktaş and had another hookah session and çay because I'm just trying to fit in!!
I enjoy sitting here and drinking my çay and smoking my nane shisha, mostly for the people watching it provides.
I'm impressed by the amount of men here who have purses, I'd say about 70% of men here have purses. Purses for all I say!
I also watched this conversation unfold and it made me smile.
I'd like to mention the couples of Istanbul. Love is in the air here and I'm enjoying the vibe.
This girl was holding a single rose 🥹.
During my hookah time a guy walked by wearing a shirt that said, "make someone smile today but don't forget that you are someone too". I love that, we are people too and we should treat ourselves with respect and love, which is why I ate cake last night.
Anyhow.
I've never been anywhere that has a cigarette smoking culture like Istanbul. Everyone here smokes and very young too, kind of wild. In restaurants, anywhere and everywhere. My host told me that they have a campaign to decrease it that involves them blurring the cigarette when people are smoking in videos on the news.
During my boat ride I did find the one place in İstanbul that you are not allowed to smoke.
I took myself on a walk after getting a lil lit off the shisha and sat in a park for a bit before heading off for food.
I landed here.
This damn wrap was so very good, and spicy! There was a pepper running along the length, I'll be thinking about this wrap for awhile.
They say you should “let sleeping dogs lay” well that's literally all they do here. A lot of the street dogs look the same and they all seem very old and lazy but who am I to judge.
My dogs are barking, seemingly the only dogs here that bark. I'll be heading back to my rooftop spot to wind down and get some rest. Tomorrow is a big day, meeting up with a friend and having a whole new adventure. Stay tuned.
Goodnight from Istanbul 🌚